Systems and methods for merchandise display, sale and inventory control

ABSTRACT

An automated retail system according to embodiments of the present invention includes a front and/or rear product rack, each rack having a plurality of bins, each of which has a product door, the system further including a basket moveable along an x-y plane on a rail system to selectively open a product door of a product bin to permit the product within the bin to fall into the basket, the basket movable to a product delivery position to release the product from the basket. Such a system may include sensors and/or scanners to determine contents of each bin, such that any product may be placed in any bin, and inventory of each bin or all bins may be determined at any time. The basket may be configured to move in x and y but not z directions, and may also serve as the sole actuation mechanism for opening the doors.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 61/482,555, filed on May 4, 2011, and of U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/586,628, filed on Jan. 13,2012, both of which are incorporated herein by reference for allpurposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present invention relate to automated vending.

BACKGROUND

Current automated vending systems often do not permit precise control ofinventory and sale of particular products within the vending systems.For example, such automated vending systems often require that thevended products be manually placed into a particular arrangement, orthat each product be placed into a particular receptacle, and/or thatthe vending system be programmed or notified, each time inventory isadded or subtracted, of the particular receptacle locationscorresponding to a particular item or type of item. In sucharrangements, precise, automated inventory control is hindered, and riskof inventory anomalies (e.g. unaccounted theft or product damage) isincreased. Such systems often operate according to an assumption thatthe physical presence of the vended items, and their location within thevending system, remains the same from the time the products are loadedinto the vending system to the time the products are dispensed from thevending system. For various reasons, this assumption leads toinefficiencies and errors in inventory management, and can often be ahindrance to automated inventory management.

SUMMARY

An automated retail system according to embodiments of the presentinvention includes a front and/or rear product rack, each rack having aplurality of bins, each of which has a product door, the system furtherincluding a basket moveable along an x-y plane on a rail system toselectively open a product door of a product bin to permit the productwithin the bin to fall or be ejected into the basket, the basket movableto a product delivery position to release the product from the basket.Such a system may include sensors and/or scanners to determine contentsof each bin, such that any product may be placed in any bin, and theinventory of each bin or all bins may be determined at any time. Thebasket may be configured to move in x and y but not z directions, andmay also serve as the sole actuation mechanism for opening the doors.

A system for automated retail according to embodiments of the presentinvention includes a product rack, the product rack comprising aplurality of compartments arranged along one or both of a horizontalaxis and a vertical axis; wherein at least one compartment of theplurality of compartments comprises a door configured to open and closethe at least one compartment, wherein at least a portion of the door issubstantially transparent; a basket; a gantry system, wherein the basketis movably coupled to the gantry system, wherein the gantry system isconfigured to position the basket adjacent to any of the plurality ofcompartments by moving the basket along one or both of the horizontalaxis and the vertical axis; and a scanner that moves with the basket,wherein the scanner is configured to identify a product within the atleast one compartment or to determine that the at least one compartmentis empty, and wherein a scanner signal of the scanner is configured topass through the at least a portion of the door.

The system of paragraph [0005], wherein the basket does not have anycomponent of movement along a direction that is substantially orthogonalto both the horizontal axis and the vertical axis.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0006], wherein the productrack is a first product rack, the system further comprising a secondproduct rack, wherein the gantry system and basket are situated betweenthe first and second product racks.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0007], wherein the basket andgantry system are configured to retrieve products from one or morecompartments in the first product rack and one or more compartments inthe second product rack.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0008], further comprising adelivery chute.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0009], further comprising adiscard bin.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0010], further comprising asensor configured to determine when the product enters the basket.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0011], further comprising asensor configured to determine when the product enters the deliverychute.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0012], further comprising adoor actuator, wherein the door actuator is configured to open the doorupon movement of the basket along one or both of the horizontal axis andthe vertical axis.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0013], wherein the doorcomprises a contact element, and wherein the door actuator is configuredto open the door when the door actuator is pushed against the dooractuator.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0014], wherein the dooractuator is extendable and retractable.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0015], wherein the dooractuator is mounted to the basket.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0016], wherein the scanner ismounted adjacent to the basket.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0017], wherein the scanner ismounted on the basket.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0018], wherein the at leastone compartment comprises a bottom that is at least partially sloped,wherein the bottom is configured to permit a product in the at least onecompartment to slide out of the compartment when the door is opened.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0019], wherein a top of thebasket is open to receive the product, and wherein a side wall of thebasket closest to the product rack is at least partially sloped.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0020], further comprising adelivery chute, wherein the basket comprises a trap door configured toopen when the basket is positioned above the delivery chute.

The system of any of paragraphs [0005] to [0021], wherein the deliverychute comprises a door actuator and the trap door comprises a contactelement, and wherein the trap door is configured to open when thecontact element is lowered onto the door actuator.

A method for determining size and position of compartments in automatedretail according to embodiments of the present invention includes usinga gantry system, moving a scanner along a product rack along ahorizontal axis and a vertical axis; recording a horizontal position anda width of each compartment or column of compartments of the productrack along the horizontal axis; recording a vertical position and aheight of each compartment or row of compartments of the product rackalong the vertical axis; scanning contents of each compartment of theproduct rack through a door on each compartment that is at leastpartially transparent.

The method of paragraph [0023], wherein moving the scanner along theproduct rack along a horizontal axis and a vertical axis comprisesmoving the scanner along the product rack simultaneously along thehorizontal axis and the vertical axis.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0024], wherein scanningcontents of each compartment of the product rack through the door oneach compartment comprises scanning the contents of each compartmentwithout opening the door.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0025], further comprising:

assembling vertical panels and horizontal panels to form the productrack with compartments of desired size.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0027], wherein scanningcontents of each compartment comprises scanning contents of eachcompartment a first time, the method further comprising scanningcontents of each compartment a second time.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0028], wherein no longer thantwenty-four hours passes between the first time and the second time.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0029], wherein no longer thaneight hours passes between the first time and the second time.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0030] wherein no longer thanone hour passes between the first time and the second time.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0031], wherein the scanningcontents of each compartment the second time is performed based on anerror message.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0032], wherein thecompartments are restocked between the first time and the second time.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0033], wherein a bottom ofeach compartment is provided with a marking, and wherein scanning themarking indicates absence of a product in the compartment.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0034], further comprising:receiving a request for a particular product; identifying a particularcompartment of the product rack in which the particular product resides;and using the gantry system to move a basket to the particularcompartment.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0035], further comprising:opening a door to the particular compartment by moving the basket withthe gantry system.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0036], further comprising:opening the door to the particular compartment by moving a door actuatorof the basket onto a contact element of the door; and receiving theparticular product within the basket.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0037], wherein opening thedoor further comprises: extending the door actuator in a direction thatis at least partially perpendicular to the horizontal axis and thevertical axis.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0038], further comprisingretracting the door actuator in the direction.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0039], further comprising:using the gantry to move the basket to a location over a delivery chute;and releasing the particular product from the basket into the deliverychute.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0040], wherein releasing theparticular product from the basket into the delivery chute comprises:opening a trap door on a bottom of the basket.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0041], wherein opening thetrap door comprises moving a contact element on the trap door onto adoor actuator on the delivery chute, using the gantry system.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0042], further comprising:sensing entry of the particular product into the delivery chute.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0043], further comprising:sensing a position of the trap door.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0044], further comprising:sensing a position of the door.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0045], further comprising:determining that an unexpected number of products have entered thebasket; based on the determination, using the gantry to move the basketto a location over an auxiliary bin; and releasing the unexpected numberof products from the basket into the auxiliary bin.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0046], further comprising:receiving the particular product in the basket; and scanning theparticular product while it is in the basket.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0047], further comprising:receiving the particular product in the basket.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0048], further comprisingsensing entry of the particular product in the basket.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0049], further comprisingsensing exit of the particular product from the basket.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0050], wherein the unexpectednumber of products is zero products or two products.

The method of any of paragraphs [0023] to [0051], wherein the gantry iscapable of moving only along the vertical and horizontal axes.

While multiple embodiments are disclosed, still other embodiments of thepresent invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art fromthe following detailed description, which shows and describesillustrative embodiments of the invention. Accordingly, the drawings anddetailed description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature andnot restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a side elevation view of an automated retail system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a front perspective view of the automated retailsystem of FIG. 1, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a front perspective view of a product deliverybasket, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a rear perspective view of the product deliverybasket of FIG. 3, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates a front perspective view of an automated retailsystem with a rear product rack, according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative front perspective view of theautomated retail system of FIG. 5, showing the product delivery basket,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates an alternative front perspective view of theautomated retail system of FIGS. 5 and 6, according to embodiments ofthe present invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates a front perspective view of a product delivery basketand delivery door activation mechanism, according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a side elevation view of the product delivery basketwith delivery door partially opened, according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates a side elevation view of the product delivery basketwith delivery door fully opened, according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 11 illustrates a perspective view of an alternative automatedretail system, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 12 illustrates a perspective view of the alternative automatedretail system of FIG. 11, according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 13 illustrates a perspective view of the alternative automatedretail system of FIGS. 11 and 12, according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

FIG. 14 illustrates a perspective view of the alternative automatedretail system of FIGS. 11 to 13, according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 15 illustrates a perspective view of a product delivery basket,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates a perspective view of an inside of an alternativeautomated retail system enclosure, showing a product delivery chute,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 17 illustrates a front perspective view of a product rack for anautomated retail system, according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 18 illustrates an automated retail system, according to embodimentsof the present invention.

FIG. 19 illustrates a computer system, according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternativeforms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in thedrawings and are described in detail below. The intention, however, isnot to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. Onthe contrary, the invention is intended to cover all modifications,equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the inventionas defined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrates an automated retail system 10, according toembodiments of the present invention. Automated retail system 10includes a front product rack 14 and a rear product rack 12, as well asa rail system including a lower horizontal rail 18, an upper horizontalrail 20, and a vertical rail 16. As used herein, the term “vertical” isused to refer to a direction that is substantially parallel to adirection of a gravitational force, and the term “horizontal” is used torefer to a direction that is substantially perpendicular to thedirection of the gravitational force. For example, a vertical directionwould be a substantially parallel to the y direction indicated in FIG.2, while a horizontal direction would be substantially parallel to the xdirection indicated in FIG. 2.

The automated retail system 10 may further include a delivery basket 22configured to be moved up and down along the vertical rail 16, with thevertical rail configured to move back-and-forth along the lower andupper horizontal rails 18, 20. This rail system, which may also bereferred to as a gantry or gantry system, permits the product deliverybasket 22 to be moved to any position along the front and/or rearproduct racks 12, 14 within the x-y range of motion. Once the deliverybasket 22 is moved to the desired position and the product delivery dooris opened, the product slides into the delivery basket 22. The deliverybasket 22 is then moved to the x-y position corresponding to thedelivery chute 26, where the basket trap door 24 is opened to permit theproduct to slide out of the basket 22, along the trap door 24, and intothe delivery chute 26, where it may be retrieved through the deliverydoor 28, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate front perspective views of a product deliverybasket 22, according to embodiments of the present invention. Productdelivery basket 22 includes a basket trap door 24, which extends underthe bottom of the product delivery basket 22 in a closed configuration,and a door actuator 32, according to embodiments of the presentinvention. Product delivery basket 22 further includes a sensor mount34, to which are mounted two product identification sensors 36, 37.Product identification sensors 36, 37 may be laser-based bar codescanners, camera or imaging sensors, and/or radio frequencyidentification (RFID) sensors, according to embodiments of the presentinvention. The superimposed projection cones 38, 40 are included toillustrate an exemplary three-dimensional range of the sensors 36, 37,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates a front perspective view of an automated retailsystem with a rear product rack 12, according to embodiments of thepresent invention. The product rack 12 includes a number of productchambers or receptacles, which may be arranged into columns and rows,for example. Products may be initially loaded into the receptaclesthrough the back side 13 of the product rack 12, and then retrieved bythe basket 22 from the front side 15 of the product rack 12, accordingto embodiments of the present invention. Alternatively, products may beinitially loaded into the receptacles from the front side 15. Accordingto embodiments of the present invention, one product is loaded into eachproduct receptacle. According to other embodiments, more than oneproduct is loaded into each product receptacle.

As shown in FIG. 6, once the product is loaded into the receptacle, adoor 62 prevents the product from falling out of the receptacle. Thebottom surface of each receptacle may be sloped or ramped, downwardlyfrom the back of the rack 13 toward the front of the rack 13, tofacilitate product delivery. For example, this slope or ramp of eachreceptacle permits the product to slide easily into the delivery basket22 once the product door 62 is opened.

FIG. 6 illustrates one way in which the delivery basket 22 may be usedto open a product delivery door 62, according to embodiments of thepresent invention. According to embodiments of the present invention,the product delivery basket 22 moves only along the x-y plane, and doesnot move in the z direction (which is perpendicular to both the x and ydirections). This saves cost and expense for building the system 10, andalso simplifies and expedites product delivery. The product deliverybasket 22 includes a door actuator 32. Door actuator 32 may be a rodthat extends from the delivery basket 22 toward the product rack 12;door actuator 32 may be rigidly affixed, and/or pivotably coupled to thedelivery basket 22 at pivot point 67 and biased in a downward positionby one or more resilient members, for example spring 69, according toembodiments of the present invention. According to some embodiments ofthe present invention, door actuator 32 is not extendable or retractablein the z direction.

Each product door 62 includes a door front 64, as well as a side lever66 pivotably coupled to the door 62. A spring 72 may be attached to thedoor 62 and/or side lever 66 in order to bias the product delivery doorin a closed position (as demonstrated by door 62 b), so that the productis retained within the receptacle by the door 62 b until the door isopened by the door actuator 32. Each door 62 may also include a contactelement 68, for example a freely rotating wheel 68, configured to becontacted by the door actuator 32. As seen in FIG. 6, the contactelements 68 extend into and/or beyond the same plane within which thedoor actuator 32 moves; therefore, the control system which controls thex-y position of the basket 22 is programmed so as not to inadvertentlymove the door actuator 32 into contact with the contact elements 68.When a particular item has been selected for delivery, the controlsystem causes the delivery basket 22 to be moved to a position in whichthe door actuator 32 is directly above the contact element 68corresponding to the door 62 to be opened, and then the basket 22 (anddoor actuator 32) are moved downwardly (in a negative y direction) suchthat the door actuator 32 pushes downwardly on the contact element 68 tolower the door 62. The contact element 68 may be a freely rotatingwheel, and may include a rubber or other gripping surface to preventslippage, while rotating to prevent binding as the door 62 is opened,according to embodiments of the present invention. Door 62 b is depictedin a closed position, while door 62 c is depicted in a partially openedposition, and door 62 is depicted in a fully opened position. The doorsdirectly above and below door 62 are also depicted in an open position,as well as door 62 c in a partially open position, for illustrativepurpose only; during use, normally only one door 62 is opened at anygiven time by the door actuator 32, according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

The delivery basket 22 and door actuator 32 are positioned with respectto each other such that, once the door 62 is opened, the product whichwas formerly held stationary behind the door 62 then slides over thedoor 62 (which has been opened to form a downward sloped ramp) and intothe basket 22. As discussed above, the inside 42 of the basket 22 mayalso be sloped to as to accommodate the downward slide of the releasedproduct. After product release into the basket 22, the door actuator 32and basket 22 may be raised to permit the door 62 to close (e.g. viaspring action 72), or the door actuator 32 and basket 22 may be moved ina positive or negative x direction to slip the door actuator 32 off ofthe contact element 68, according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

As shown in FIG. 8, once the desired product has been received into thebasket 22, the basket 22 may be moved along the x-y plane until it ispositioned directly above a trap door actuator 84. The trap door 24 ofthe basket 22 pivots about pivot point 44 (see FIG. 4), and includes acontact element 82, which may be similar to contact element 68previously described. When the basket 22 is lowered from the positionshown in FIG. 8, the contact element 82 contacts the trap door actuator84, and the trap door 24 is opened. FIG. 9 illustrates the trap door 24in a partially open position, and FIG. 10 illustrates the trap door 24in a fully opened position. Once the trap door 24 is opened, the productslides or falls by gravity into the delivery chute 26, and may beretrieved by a user through a delivery door 28.

According to embodiments of the present invention, each door 62 includesa transparent window 64, which permits the scanner 36 or scanners,imagers, RFID transceivers, and/or cameras, at any desired time, to movealong the x-y plane and take inventory of the automated retail system10. This facilitates loading or stocking of the system 10 with newproduct, and also facilitates inventory tracking and control. When auser manually loads new products into the product rack 12, the basket 22moves to positions corresponding to each product bin, and scanningsystem 36 determines the contents of each receptacle and/or location ofeach inventory item. This prevents the inventory personnel from havingto place certain products in certain locations, and/or having tomanually indicate to the system 10 the actual bin location of eachproduct. Optionally, the scanning system 36 may be used to confirm thecontents of a particular bin before the door to that bin is opened,and/or to confirm the absence of the contents of a particular bin at anytime. The system 10 may also be programmed to automatically scan theinventory at certain time intervals, for example every eight hourperiod. The system 10 can also make a note of bins for which aninconclusive scan was performed, and create a flag for later follow-upby a technician, and to remove the problem bin from the immediatelyavailable retail inventory of the system 10.

The sensors/scanners 36 and/or 37 may also be used to sense or scan thedelivery of a product from the bin into the basket 22, and/or from thebasket 22 into the delivery chute 26. Other different sensors and typesof sensors may also be used for these purposes. For example, each door62 may include a door position sensor 70 (see FIG. 6) configured toconvey a signal indicating a position of the door 62 to the controlsystem. This may be a simple “open/closed” indication, and/or mayinclude an incremental or relative position of the door, according toembodiments of the present invention. Other optical, camera, imager,laser, and/or RFID sensors may be included in, on, and/or near thebasket 22 in order to sense or confirm product location and/or delivery.For example, sensor 63 on the basket 22 may be used to sense the passageof a product from within a bin in the rack 12 to within the basket 22,and sensor 61 on the trap door 24 may be used to sense the passage of aproduct from within the basket 22, down the trap door 24, and into thedelivery chute 26, according to embodiments of the present invention.

Although a particular trap door 24 mechanism is described herein, othertrap door-type mechanisms, as well as other non-trap door-typemechanisms, may be used to retain the product on or within the basket 22between the time the basket 22 receives the product and the time thebasket 22 conveys the product to the delivery chute 26, according toembodiments of the present invention. For example, the basket 22 mayinclude a bottom which slides out horizontally from under the basket 22to release a product therein.

Although FIGS. 5-10 illustrate the door opening and product retrievalfrom the rear product rack 12, the basket 22 and rail system may also beused to open doors and retrieve products from the front product rack 14in a similar manner, according to embodiments of the present invention.The basket 22 may include another door actuator extending from thebasket 22 in a direction toward the front product rack 14, similar tohow the door actuator 32 extends toward the rear product rack 12.According to embodiments of the present invention, the vertical and/orhorizontal placement of the bins of the front product rack 14 may beoffset in an x and/or y direction with respect to the correspondingplacement of the bins of the rear product rack 14, to facilitatemovement of the basket 22. According to other embodiments of the presentinvention, the bins of the front product rack 14 are not offset withrespect to the bins of the rear product rack 12, and the basket 22 anddoor actuators 32 are simply maneuvered around the contact elements 68of each door to avoid accidental collisions as the basket 22 is movedalong the x-y plane.

FIGS. 11-14 illustrate operation of an automated retail system similarto system 10, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 15 illustrates a perspective view of a product delivery basket 22′,according to embodiments of the present invention. Product deliverybasket 22′ may include some or all of the features or characteristicsdescribed with respect to product delivery basket 22, and productdelivery basket 22 may include some or all of the features orcharacteristics described with respect to product delivery basket 22′,according to embodiments of the present invention. Product deliverybasket 22′ includes a basket trap door 24′, which extends under thebottom of the product delivery basket 22′ in a closed configuration, anda door actuator 32′, according to embodiments of the present invention.Instead of having a laterally adjacent sensor mount 34 like basket 22,the sensor mounts 34′ of basket 22′ are on the basket 22′ itself,according to embodiments of the present invention. A productidentification sensor 36′ is located on the sensor mount 34′, and asimilar product identification sensor may be located on another sensormount on the other side of the basket 22′, according to embodiments ofthe present invention. Product identification sensors 36′ may belaser-based bar code scanners, camera or imaging sensors, and/or radiofrequency identification (RFID) sensors, according to embodiments of thepresent invention. The superimposed projection cones 38′, 40′ areincluded to illustrate an exemplary three-dimensional range of thesensors 36′, according to embodiments of the present invention.

Basket 22′ may operate similarly to basket 22, according to embodimentsof the present invention. According to some embodiments of the presentinvention, the door actuators 32′ are retractable and extendable, tofurther facilitate the navigation of the basket in the x-y coordinatesystem over the various compartments. For example, when the basket 22′is moved along the gantry system in the x-y directions, the dooractuators 32′ may be retracted so that they do not catch on or otherwiseinterfere with the hardware of the display rack (e.g. the door actuatorsor the compartments themselves). The door actuators 32′ may be extendedwhen a particular compartment is selected for opening, according toembodiments of the present invention. Although the basket 22′ is shownwith two opposing door actuators 32′, the basket 22′ may alternativelyinclude only one door actuator 32′, or more than two door actuators 32′,depending on the arrangement of the front and/or back panels and theparticular door opening mechanisms used. The door actuators 32′ may beactuated with an electronically controlled solenoid 74 and pivot arm 76,or with various other electronically controlled or other mechanisms,according to embodiments of the present invention. Basket 22′ alsoincludes a trap door 24′ and contact element 82′ which operate similarlyto trap door 24 and contact element 82, according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates a perspective view of an inside of an alternativeautomated retail system enclosure or housing 1, showing a productdelivery chute 26′, according to embodiments of the present invention.Product delivery chute 26′ and trap door actuator 84′ operate similarlyto product delivery chute 26 and trap door actuator 84, according toembodiments of the present invention. The basket 22′ may be moved tojust above the trap door actuator 84′ and lowered until contact element82′ catches on trap door actuator 84′, thereby opening the trap door 24′and causing the dispensed product to fall from the basket 22′ into thedelivery chute 26′, according to embodiments of the present invention.The delivery chute 26′ may include one or more lighting and/or sensingapparatus 93, 94 configured to identify the receipt of a product at thebottom of the chute 26′ and/or to scan the product at the bottom of thechute 26′ to identify and/or confirm the identity of the product,according to embodiments of the present invention. For example, system93 may create a light curtain across the delivery chamber which isinterrupted when a product arrives. The delivery chute 26′ may include adelivery door 90, for example a door 90 which slides up and down ontracks 91 and has a handle 92 for lifting the door, according toembodiments of the present invention. According to embodiments of thepresent invention, the opening of door 90 is locked until a product isready to be retrieved from the chute 26′.

FIG. 16 also shows an auxiliary bin 95. Auxiliary bin 95 may also have atrap door actuator 84′. Products may be delivered by the basket 22′ tothe auxiliary bin 95 in much the same way that they are delivered to thedelivery chute 26′, by positioning the basket 22′ over the door actuator96 and lowering the basket 22′ until contact element 82′ catches on thedoor actuator 96, thereby opening the trap door 24′ and causing anyproduct within the basket 22′ to fall into the auxiliary bin 95. Theauxiliary bin 95 may be used to receive items which have expired, itemswhich require additional attention before being dispensed, and/or itemsto be disposed of, for example. The auxiliary bin 95 may also be used bybasket 22′ to open the trap door 24′ in situations in which the controlsystem for the basket 22′ cannot determine the identity of a particularproduct and/or cannot determine whether a product is in the basket 22′.The auxiliary bin 95 may also be used to release products in cases inwhich the basket 22′ detects or suspects the presence of more than oneor of too many products within the basket 22′, to prevent thedispensation of too many products or unknown products, according toembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 17 illustrates a front perspective view of a product rack 2 for anautomated retail system, according to embodiments of the presentinvention. The rack 2 includes compartments as described above, witheach compartment having a width W and a height H, according toembodiments of the present invention. The rack 2 may be formed ofvarious plates, which may be metal or plastic or other rigid orsemi-rigid material. For example, the bottom of each chamber may beformed of a bottom plate 100, and the sides of each chamber may beformed of vertical plates 99. A spacer plate 98 may be located betweenadjacent vertical panels 99, and may in some cases operate as a stop forthe door 62′ when the door 62′ is fully opened, according to embodimentsof the present invention. These sheets or plates 98, 99, 100 may be usedto create compartments which are customizable in size and easy toassemble. As described above, the plates 100 may interface with thevertical plates 99 so as to create a downward slope to permit productssitting on top of the plate 100 in each compartment to slide down overthe door 62′ when the door 62′ is opened, according to embodiments ofthe present invention.

The control system which controls the position of the basket 22 or 22′uses sensors 36, 37, 36′ which may also be configured to identifyposition or relative position. Using these sensors, the control systemcan identify the location of a compartment and determine the location ofthe basket 22 or 22′ relative to the compartment. The sensor system maybe configured to identify edges, for example the left-most and/orright-most edges of the vertical plates 99, which permit the controlsystem to position the basket 22, 22′ correctly in the x dimension. Thesensor system may also be configured to identify one or more edges 97formed as notches or breaks in the vertical plates 99, in order topermit the control system to position the basket 22, 22′ correctly inthe y dimension. As such, the same basket 22, 22′ and sensor systems maybe used with a wide variety of different compartment sizes andconfigurations. The basket 22, 22′ and sensor systems may also be usedto scan and deliver items from a rack which includes differently-sizedcompartments on the same rack, using this position identificationtechnology. This also permits the same programming to be used fordifferent rack configurations, thereby decreasing the cost of suchsystems and making them easier to physically update and/or configure.

According to some embodiments, the sensor system can scan the contentsof a compartment while at the same time identifying one or moreindicators of the location or boundary of the compartment. According tosome embodiments, multiple baskets 22, 22′ may be used simultaneously orindependently for the same or different products racks within theoverall system.

The automated retail system may include an initialization sequence orprotocol for the control system of the basket 22 or 22′, according toembodiments of the present invention. The basket 22 may begin in a“home” or starting position, for example in the upper or lower left-handor right-hand corner of a particular product rack 2, and may then usethe position sensor as the basket 22 moves to the right or left to countthe number of vertical plates 99 until it reaches a stop (either virtualor actual), and may also move up or down to count the number of verticaledge indicators 97 until it reaches a stop (either virtual or actual),to create an internal “map” of the location of each compartment. Thisinitialization sequence may be performed upon machine startup, or atregularly scheduled intervals, or when the system detects a fault stateor otherwise encounters an error. The scanning of each product in eachcompartment may be done simultaneously with or at a different time fromthis initialization sequence. Also, the initialization sequence may beperformed for one of the front and back racks and then the other, oralternatively with sensors on both sides of basket 22, may be performedsimultaneously for the front and back racks during the same pass of thebasket 22. An initialization sequence for basket 22′ may be controlledin a similar fashion.

According to some embodiments of the present invention, it may bedesirable to affirmatively indicate to the scanners or sensors 36, 37,36′ when there is no item present in a particular compartment. The doors62′ of the compartments may be transparent to permit the bar code orother identifier on an item to be scanned through the door. When thebasket 22 does not detect any item within the compartment, it may beconfigured to “jiggle” back and forth and/or up and down for a shortperiod of time in order to increase the chances of scanning an item inthe compartment. If no item is detected, then the controller maydetermine that no item is present in the compartment. According to someembodiments of the present invention, the controller then causes thebasket 22 or 22′ to open that particular compartment, and to deliver anycontents to the auxiliary bin 95. According to some embodiments of thepresent invention, a special bar code or other indicator is placed onthe top of the plate 100, such that when an item is present in thecompartment the item covers such special bar code or other indicator,such that the scanner scans only the item in the compartment, and suchthat when an item is not present in the compartment, the scanner scansthe special bar code or other indicator which indicates that thecompartment is empty. Such a special bar code or other indicator mayalternatively be placed on the outside or inside of the door 62, 62′,and operate in a similar fashion.

FIG. 18 illustrates an automated retail system, according to embodimentsof the present invention. A control system 102 is communicably coupledto the gantry system 104, actuators or other machinery (e.g. actuators32, 32′), and sensors and/or scanners or other sensing devices (e.g. 36,36′, 37, 61, 63, 70, 93, and 94). The gantry system 104 may include railsystem 16, 18, 20 and associated cables, motors, electronics, and otherhardware for moving the delivery basket 22 along the horizontal axis xand the vertical axis y, according to embodiments of the presentinvention. Control system 102 may be a personal computer or othercomputing device, according to embodiments of the present invention.

The control system 102 is capable of executing instructions to performthe steps and methods described herein, in whatever order, and excludingone or more steps and/or including one or more additional steps orrepetitions of steps, according to embodiments of the present invention.The control system 102 receives information or signals and, based onsuch information or signals, sends out control signals to cause thegantry system 104, actuators 32, 32′, and other hardware to moveaccordingly, as described herein. The control system may also receiveinformation from other hardware, not shown, for example a user interfacetouchscreen which receives selections from users of products to retrievefrom compartments. The control system 102 may also rely on other sensorsor signals not expressly shown, but which are apparent to one ofordinary skill in the art based on the present disclosure. For example,positional sensors may be used to provide the control system 102 withthe two-dimensional (or three-dimensional) position of any piece ofhardware described herein.

When a customer or requester indicates to the control system 102 that aparticular product or item is desired, the control system 102 checks itsdatabase or listing of inventory based on its last scanning routineand/or initialization sequence. The control system 102 may find multiplematches for the product or the type of product requested. The controlsystem 102 then controls the delivery basket 22 to send it, via thegantry system 104, to a particular compartment holding the particularproduct that has been requested. According to embodiments of the presentinvention, the scanner 36, 37 then scans the contents of the compartmentagain to verify again that the particular product is actually in thecompartment. Systems which rely on manual and/or pre-positioned and/orpre-programmed inventory information do not have this capability, toconfirm the presence and identity of the product just prior todispensing. Once the product is verified, the door 62 to the compartmentis opened, and the product is received in the delivery basket 22, atwhich point it may then be scanned again, or a different kind of sensormay be used to sense that the product has entered the basket 22,according to embodiments of the present invention. As such, embodimentsof the present invention include an ability to determine the size, andlayout of a customized grid of compartments, on one or both of a frontcompartment rack and a rear compartment rack, and scan and record/updatethe contents of each compartment. This may be done not only uponinitialization or startup, but also after restocking, and also at anypoint in time. Also, individual compartments can be selectively scannedto confirm their contents, for example just prior to vending the productor otherwise opening the compartment's door. This automated inventorycontrol reduces system errors, and also automates the process of takinginventory of the particular rack or racks or set of compartments.

FIG. 19 is an example of a computer system 200 with which embodiments ofthe present invention may be utilized. Computer system 200 represents anexemplary computer, which may operate as controller 102 in order toreceive inputs (e.g. from sensors) and/or provide outputs (e.g. tocontrol the gantry system and/or door actuator, among others). In thissimplified example, the computer system 200 comprises a bus 201 or othercommunication means for communicating data and control information, andone or more processing devices 202, such as a well known processor,Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a field programmablegate array (FPGA), or the like, coupled with bus 201.

In this simplified embodiment, computer system 200 further comprises arandom access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device (referred toas main memory 204), coupled to bus 201 for storing information andinstructions to be executed by processing device 202. Main memory 204also may be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediateinformation during execution of instructions by processor(s) 202.

Computer system 200 can also include a read only memory (ROM) 206 and/orother static storage device coupled to bus 201 for storing staticinformation and instructions for processing device 202. A mass storagedevice 207, such as a magnetic disk or optical disc and itscorresponding drive, may also be coupled to bus 201 for storinginstructions and information, such as configuration files, a key storeand registration database, and the like.

One or more communication ports 203 may also be coupled to bus 201 forsupporting network connections and communication of information to/fromthe computer system 200 by way of a communication network, such as aLocal Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), or the Internet, forexample. The communication ports 203 may include various combinations ofwell-known interfaces, such as one or more modems to provide networkaccess, one or more 10/100 Ethernet ports, one or more Gigabit Ethernetports (fiber and/or copper), or other well-known network interfacescommonly used in internetwork environments. In any event, in thismanner, the computer system 200 may be coupled to a number of othernetwork devices, communication devices, clients, NTMs, and/or serversvia a conventional communication network infrastructure.

Optionally, operator and administrative interfaces (not shown), such asa display, keyboard, and a cursor control device, may also be coupled tobus 201 to support direct operator interaction with computer system 200.Other operator and administrative interfaces can be provided throughnetwork connections connected through communication ports 203. Finally,removable storage media (not shown), such as one or more external orremovable hard drives, tapes, floppy disks, magneto-optical discs,compact disk-read-only memories (CD-ROMs), compact disk writablememories (CD-R, CD-RW), digital versatile discs or digital video discs(DVDs) (e.g., DVD-ROMs and DVD+RW), Zip disks, or USB memory devices,e.g., thumb drives or flash cards, may be coupled to bus 201 viacorresponding drives, ports or slots.

Various modifications and additions can be made to the exemplaryembodiments discussed without departing from the scope of the presentinvention. For example, while the embodiments described above refer toparticular features, the scope of this invention also includesembodiments having different combinations of features and embodimentsthat do not include all of the described features. Accordingly, thescope of the present invention is intended to embrace all suchalternatives, modifications, and variations as fall within the scope ofthe claims, together with all equivalents thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for automated retail comprising: aproduct rack, the product rack comprising a plurality of compartmentsarranged along one or both of a horizontal axis and a vertical axis;wherein at least one compartment of the plurality of compartmentscomprises a door configured to open and close the at least onecompartment, wherein at least a portion of the door is substantiallytransparent; a basket; a gantry system, wherein the basket is movablycoupled to the gantry system, wherein the gantry system is configured toposition the basket adjacent to any of the plurality of compartments bymoving the basket along one or both of the horizontal axis and thevertical axis; and a scanner that moves with the basket, wherein thescanner is configured to identify a product within the at least onecompartment or to determine that the at least one compartment is empty,and wherein a scanner signal of the scanner is configured to passthrough the at least a portion of the door.
 2. The system of claim 1,wherein the basket does not have any component of movement along adirection that is substantially orthogonal to both the horizontal axisand the vertical axis.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the productrack is a first product rack, the system further comprising a secondproduct rack, wherein the gantry system and basket are situated betweenthe first and second product racks.
 4. The system of claim 3, whereinthe basket and gantry system are configured to retrieve products fromone or more compartments in the first product rack and one or morecompartments in the second product rack.
 5. The system of claim 1,further comprising a delivery chute.
 6. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising a discard bin.
 7. The system of claim 1, further comprising asensor configured to determine when the product enters the basket. 8.The system of claim 5, further comprising a sensor configured todetermine when the product enters the delivery chute.
 9. The system ofclaim 1, further comprising a door actuator, wherein the door actuatoris configured to open the door upon movement of the basket along one orboth of the horizontal axis and the vertical axis.
 10. The system ofclaim 9, wherein the door comprises a contact element, and wherein thedoor actuator is configured to open the door when the door actuator ispushed against the door actuator.
 11. The system of claim 9, wherein thedoor actuator is extendable and retractable.
 12. The system of claim 9,wherein the door actuator is mounted to the basket.
 13. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the scanner is mounted adjacent to the basket.
 14. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the scanner is mounted on the basket.
 15. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the at least one compartment comprises abottom that is at least partially sloped, wherein the bottom isconfigured to permit a product in the at least one compartment to slideout of the compartment when the door is opened.
 16. The system of claim15, wherein a top of the basket is open to receive the product, andwherein a side wall of the basket closest to the product rack is atleast partially sloped.
 17. The system of claim 16, further comprising adelivery chute, wherein the basket comprises a trap door configured toopen when the basket is positioned above the delivery chute.
 18. Thesystem of claim 17, wherein the delivery chute comprises a door actuatorand the trap door comprises a contact element, and wherein the trap dooris configured to open when the contact element is lowered onto the dooractuator.
 19. A method for determining size and position of compartmentsin automated retail, the method comprising: using a gantry system,moving a scanner along a product rack along a horizontal axis and avertical axis; recording a horizontal position and a width of eachcompartment or column of compartments of the product rack along thehorizontal axis; recording a vertical position and a height of eachcompartment or row of compartments of the product rack along thevertical axis; scanning contents of each compartment of the product rackthrough a door on each compartment that is at least partiallytransparent.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein scanning contents ofeach compartment of the product rack through the door on eachcompartment comprises scanning the contents of each compartment withoutopening the door.